Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Viasat Inc. (NASDAQ:VSAT) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eleven ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $84.1111.

Several equities research analysts have commented on VSAT shares. Raymond James Financial set a $74.00 price objective on Viasat and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on shares of Viasat from $58.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 1st. Zacks Research cut shares of Viasat from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and set a $97.00 target price on shares of Viasat in a report on Monday, June 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Viasat in a research report on Friday.

Insider Buying and Selling at Viasat

In other news, Director Theresa Wise sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.00, for a total transaction of $172,500.00. Following the sale, the director owned 11,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $759,000. This represents a 18.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark D. Dankberg sold 400,000 shares of Viasat stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.76, for a total value of $25,904,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,082,196 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $70,083,012.96. This trade represents a 26.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 438,803 shares of company stock valued at $28,655,600. Corporate insiders own 2.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Viasat

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Viasat during the 4th quarter worth approximately $830,000. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Viasat in the third quarter valued at approximately $7,325,000. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in Viasat by 797.5% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 117,019 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $4,032,000 after acquiring an additional 103,981 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL boosted its position in shares of Viasat by 84.3% during the 4th quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 38,700 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $1,334,000 after purchasing an additional 17,700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Viasat by 100.0% in the 4th quarter. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. now owns 84,000 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $2,895,000 after purchasing an additional 42,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.05% of the company’s stock.

Viasat Stock Performance

Shares of Viasat stock opened at $73.69 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $71.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $57.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.06 billion, a P/E ratio of -254.10 and a beta of 1.70. The company has a quick ratio of 2.19, a current ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. Viasat has a 52 week low of $14.00 and a 52 week high of $93.03.

Viasat (NASDAQ:VSAT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 28th. The communications equipment provider reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by ($0.34). Viasat had a negative net margin of 0.73% and a positive return on equity of 1.58%. The company had revenue of $1.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.20 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.02) EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Viasat will post -0.39 EPS for the current year.

Viasat Company Profile

Viasat, Inc (NASDAQ: VSAT) provides high‐capacity satellite broadband and wireless communications services to consumer, commercial and government customers worldwide. The company designs and operates satellite systems and network infrastructure to deliver secure, high-speed connectivity across remote and underserved regions, as well as managed networking solutions for enterprises and public sector agencies.

Viasat’s product offerings include residential and enterprise satellite internet services, in-flight connectivity for commercial airlines and business jets, and secure networking platforms tailored to defense and intelligence users.